Common questions
Short answers about the app itself. For a question about your religion, ask a qualified scholar.
Is Sabīl free?
Yes. Sabīl is free of charge and carries no advertising. Knowledge is never put behind a payment.
About & trustDo I need an account?
No. Sabīl works fully without one. Signing in adds one thing: a copy of your record in your account, so that a new phone or a second device can have it. If accounts are not switched on for this copy of Sabīl, the Account screen says so.
AccountWhere is my record kept?
On your phone, in this browser. Without an account nothing leaves it. If you sign in, a copy is also kept in your account; zakāt figures and today’s counts stay on the phone even then.
SettingsDoes it work without a connection?
Yes. Prayer times are calculated on the phone, and pages are kept on the phone as you open them. To read the whole library with no connection, use “Download the library” in Settings.
SettingsHow do I put Sabīl on my home screen?
In Settings, under “Install Sabīl”. On an iPhone or iPad it is done from Safari’s Share menu, and Settings says how.
SettingsHow do I move my record to a new phone?
Use “Export a copy” in Settings on the old phone and “Restore from a copy” on the new one. If accounts are switched on for this copy of Sabīl, you can instead sign in on both phones, and your record follows your account.
SettingsHow do I delete my record?
“Erase everything” in Settings removes your record from this phone, and from your account if you are signed in. If you have an account, “Delete my account” on the Account screen removes it and everything Sabīl’s server holds about you.
SettingsDoes Sabīl track me or show adverts?
No. It shows no adverts and loads no analytics.
About & trustWhy do the prayer times differ from my masjid’s?
Sabīl calculates the times on your phone, from your place and a method of calculation. A masjid or an authority may use another method or its own timetable. In Settings you can choose “Calculation method” and “ʿAṣr time”.
SettingsWhy is the Hijri date a day out?
The date is calculated, and a local moon sighting can differ from it by a day or two. In Settings, under “Hijri date”, you can shift it.
SettingsWhere do the texts come from, and have scholars checked them?
The library was written for Sabīl and its scholarly review is still in progress: a title is marked “Scholarly review: pending” until two scholars have signed it. The meanings of the Qur’ān and the ḥadīth collections are other publishers’ texts, shown as they were published and marked as unreviewed. The About page lists every source.
About & trustCan Sabīl answer my religious question?
No. Sabīl gives general information, not religious rulings, and it has no chatbot. For a ruling on your own circumstances, ask a qualified scholar.
I think I have found a mistake. What do I do?
The mailbox for Sabīl is being set up. The Contact page will give the address as soon as someone is reading it, and say what to include. We check every report against the source before anything is changed.
ContactCan our masjid use Sabīl?
Yes. The Masjid section has a prayer timetable to print and a screen for a display, free in the same app, and every title in the library can be printed.
Masjid